


Blurred Vision

by Yohan_King



Category: OC - Fandom
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-07
Updated: 2020-12-08
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:46:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27932521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yohan_King/pseuds/Yohan_King
Summary: The story of past high school friends learning to love each other.
Relationships: Bat Boi x Birb Boi, Neo x Bella
Kudos: 4





	1. Heat

Exhaling sharply, the air in the room stood still. It was heavy. The dampness of the night crept through the window, sticking to his figure.  
“It’s so hot here!” The male exclaimed suddenly into his microphone. The other voices on the other end of the call suddenly stopped which made the male chuckle nervously. “What?”

A voice on the other end sounded soft but a bit stern. “Then open a window, Bella. Didn’t you say earlier that it was hot?” A small chuckle followed his words.  
Bella nodded and smiled when he heard that voice. “A window is open, you goofball. Anyway, why are you guys video chatting? I thought that you had homework.”  
“Well,” The soft voice began again. “I like to see you guys when I talk to you. Besides, you’re the only one with your camera off. I thought we were going to play a card game before bed like we did last night.”

The other voice on the line cut in. “Well, I have to go anyway. It was nice talking to you two. Good night Bella. Night Neo.”  
“Good night Al.” Bella and Neo both chimed. Al’s icon in the discord call disappeared which caused Bella to adjust in his seat. The air felt even heavier after Al left the call. She was the one person keeping the call from getting awkward. And now she left. 

Bella looked over at the clock next to his desk. 1:08am. He sighed again which caused Neo to hum in a questioning tone. “Is something up?” He asked, looking down at his computer keyboard.  
Bella shook his head.

Neo looked up at the camera and rested his expression into a deadpan. “You do realize I can’t see you if you don’t say anything. Just turn your face cam on. We’re about to get our conversation cut short anyway because I have to go to bed soon too.” Bella let his eyelids close over his soft amber eyes. He took in a sharp breath then smiled, “Sure let me just get situated.”  
Neo smiled at the camera, putting his hands in his lap then grinning a little. Bella’s eyes looked back at the video just in time to catch that adorable moment. He swallowed hard then laughed. “What are you doing Neo? Trying to look cute?” He asked as he joined the video call, his camera light blinking then flickering on.

Neo gasped then shook his head. “I’m sorry! You know that I wasn’t!” he huffed defensively, crossing his arms and rolling his eyes. Bella smirked then moved his red hair out of his face. “Yeah whatever,” he teased, smiling at his best friend then getting interrupted by his voice through his pink headphones.  
“Do you want to play a game?” Neo asked, looking down at his screen, minimizing the window and moving it up his screen as he asked. “Sure, I don’t care what we play.” Bella slumped back in his chair and did the same, looking at his steam library, gritting his teeth in disappointment. No new games. Nothing interesting. “I don’t think that we have any games that we haven’t already played though, Neo,” the male stated, half distracted by reading over the list one more time.

“Well maybe we should just cut the night short the- “  
“NO!” Bella exclaimed then quickly cleared his throat. “I mean…”

Neo laughed and adjusted his headphones. “Oh right, you’d miss me too much wouldn’t you?” he laughed, obviously joking. Bella chuckled and nodded. “Well of course!” Inside, he secretly wished that Neo wasn’t joking. That he was being serious for once. Wait what?  
Bella shook his head, confused. Neo’s smile faded slightly. “What?” he asked, pulling up a game of solitaire.

“Nothing… I just had a weird thought for a second,” Bella assured, waving his hand to give the message he was cool. “Yeah? Well, what was it about?” Neo asked, not listening to the conversation hard. “Was it about that stupid dream that you keep bragging to Al about in chat?” he sighed, looking up at the camera for a second. “Why don’t you just go talk to the person about it?”  
Bella bit the side of his lip and put his hands in his coat pockets. “Well, it isn’t as easy as you think. And hey! I do not talk about it all the time. Don’t look at me like that,” he whined to gain sympathy points, but Neo did not give in at all. “Well okay listen.” Neo started. “If you keep telling Al about that dream while I’m there I might just find out who you’re talking about then ask them your questions myself!” He laughed, finishing his game then starting a new one.

Bella shoved his hands into his pockets deeper. “Well…” his voice trailed off. “You don’t know the person.” “Are they actually real? You making them up?” “No, they’re real.”

Neo paused his game and clicked back on the minimized window, enlarging it then pulling his hands away from his computer. “Bella, do I know them?” he asked with a serious tone, an eyebrow raised slightly. “I’m curious. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone.” Bella tightened his lips together for a second then after a moment, nodded, is head going up and down twice. 

He slumped back into his chair more, waiting on Neo’s answer.

The male on the other end on the call, bent his arm on the desk then rested his head in his hand. “I see. I won’t say anything, but I have to admit, you had my attention for a second.”

Bella glanced back up at the video. Neo was playing the card game again, facing slightly away from the camera but still had his whole face in shot. His brown hair caught the display’s light and shined softly in his dark room. His glasses mirrored the uneventful gameplay. His soft brown eyes were focused unnecessarily on the game as if it was a boss battle in a video game. His attire was a grey hoodie with slightly darker grey sweatpants, one leg bent up to his chest in his black leather chair.

The male’s wings were tightly pressed against the chair and his back, making them almost unnoticeable. Bella stared, admiring his features, feeling something in his chest when Neo smiled at the game.

A sharp pain echoed in his chest, vibrating up his chest then down his spine. He felt a small amount of sweat accumulate on his forehead and down the middle of his back. ‘What was that?’ He thought, clenching his fist but still not looking away from the video. He never really took the time to actually look at Neo. Well, he had but it was the first time that he had actually seen him, like this. It felt like he was looking at him through a different light.

“Bella. You’ve been staring at me for the past thirty seconds.”  
“Huh? What did you say?” Bella mumbled as if it was one word.

Neo looked over to the side, then back at the camera. “You’re acting weird.”

“No, I’m not!” Bella said quickly. “Oh really? If you’re trying to mess with me, you aren’t doing a good job.” Neo pushed, a smile growing on his face. “I know all of your tricks,” he chuckled. “But it’s too late for that.”

Bella looked at the clock then sighed. “You’re right. You know my tricks. I have to think of a different tactic.” He relaxed after hearing his words. He did flirt a lot with Neo over calls and group text messages but not really in person. “You have to do better than that,” Neo said softly, leaning back in his chair, raising his arms above his head in a stretch. “I mean, you’re a Veela right? Aren’t you supposed to be good at this sort of thing?” Bella sighed with a smile. “Uh- no.” he chuckled. “If I am, then well, it seems I got the short end of the stick on that one. No, it just means that I’m protective and stuff…” he mumbled.

“Protective of what?” Neo asked. “People I care about. It’s just in my biology,” Bella chimed in. “L-like family and friends.” He added immediately after, almost defensively. “I see,” Neo hummed. He smiled and leaned close to the camera. “Are you protective of me?” He asked with a curious smile. 

That pain again. No… it was an ache this time. Why? 

Bella put on a fake teasing smirk and then rolled his eyes. “Well duh! I care about all of you guys!” ‘Nice,’ he said to himself.

“Well anyway, I have to log off for the night. I’ll text you tomorrow okay?” Neo playfully winked at the camera then ended the call before Bella got the chance to say anything.

Bella exhaled harshly. “Definitely for the best. I don’t even know what’s going on… am I having mini-heart attacks?” he asked himself. “I wouldn’t even know how to say goodbye…” Bella cleared his throat as he turned his computer off, taking his headphones off as well. He took a breath then stood up, slowly walking to his bathroom then leaning against the sink, closing his eyes for a second then looking back up at the mirror. He froze at the way he looked.

His face was red, the dark tint fading over his cheeks, up to his ears. He felt different than before. ‘What… why am I feeling like this? Did I eat something weird?’ He thought, looking at himself in the mirror at different angles. A chirp came from his phone. “Oh? A Snapchat notification?” he pulled his phone up and clicked on the message. It was from Neo.

"Sleep well Bella Bb :)"

Bella felt that feeling in his chest get even more intense. His fingers gripped around his phone, accidently hitting the power button. Bella’s black wings slumped behind him, falling to the ground, covering it until it looked like a pile of black feathers. “He’s so cute…” Bella mumbled, catching himself but not doing anything to try to convince himself it was a mistake. “Maybe I’m sick…” he frowned, running his fingers through his messy red hair, feeling the heat of his face rise as he pulled his hands down his face then back down to the sink.

His phone chimed again. “Neo again?” He opened the message rather fast.

"Leaving me on read? I see how it is."

Bella fumbled his phone, almost dropping it.

"No. No!" He texted back. "You didn’t give me a chance to respond you goober."

Bella stared at his screen as he walked back to his bed, holding his phone softly in his hands as he sat on his bed. 

"Well, good night."

"Good night Neo."

Bella saved all of the messages, then shut his phone off. He felt his face and closed his eyes as he leaned back on the bed. His large wings were uncomfortable as always on his back. Shaking his head softly, his arm raised to lay over his eyes.  
“I have a feeling…” he exhaled shakily, feeling the ache in his chest grow. “...this isn’t caused by the heat in my room…”


	2. Question With No Answer

+From Neo’s Perspective+

Sunlight stretched across the room, inching over the floor until it reached Neo’s bed. It perfectly ran across his face, getting right into his eyes, causing him to wake up. The male slowly opened his eyes, moving them slowly across the room until it reached his bedside table. His phone sat perched in a wireless charging stand with the time 8:35 am. “I hate that,” he growled under his breath before slumping back down into the bed, his wing slowly raising up then covering his face. 

He laid there for several minutes but wasn’t able to go to sleep. Bella’s words kept repeating in his head. “…Is he talking to someone?” he mumbled. “Like… to date?” Neo gripped the sheets with his hand and made a confused expression. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but why wouldn’t he tell him who it was. I mean, they told each other everything, so why keep this a secret. It was eating Neo up.  
“I guess I’m getting up…” he grunted, crawling out of bed, putting his clothes on as he dragged himself to the kitchen. Neo stretched his wings out completely. He had an impressive wingspan for his size, but just like always he kept his wings tightly tucked into his body. He never knew why, it’s just more comfortable to keep them tightly closed.

Neo started to get breakfast ready then headed back to his room. He checked his phone and saw a single message from Bella. Neo smiled and opened it up with a smile. It was a selfie of Bella with a half-asleep smile, slouched on his bed with the caption.

“Sleep well bat <3”

Neo felt touched for some reason and screenshotted the picture on accident. He didn’t realize he did as he thought that he hit the button to turn the phone off. Neo set it down then went into the bathroom to clean himself up, brush his teeth, and make himself look not homeless. 

“I wonder what Bella and the others are up to,” Neo chirped, grabbing his phone, throwing it onto the desk then sitting down at his computer. Opening Discord, he messages everyone in the main chat. “Anyone want to play a quick game of Cards Against Humanity?”

It didn’t take more than a few seconds for several people to respond. Soon, the game began with all, but one slot filled. Neo started up the voice call and everyone joined. A spam of messages rang in the main chat then a beep indicating that someone joined the call. “NEO” the voice exclaimed, making the others in the call groan from the loud noise so early. “Bella I’m here,” he chuckled, automatically adding him to the current game. “Neo, good morning,” he said softly over the audio. Another person chimed in, groaning loudly. “Keep it in your pants Bella. We’re all here alright? Do that on your private time.”

Bella laughed and scoffed. “Yeah? Can I not say good morning?”

“Not in that voice.”

“I just woke up calm down.”

“Guys...” Neo said nervously. “Can we play the ga- “

“Is there a problem Bella? Are we not allowed to talk to your friend or do we need to ask permission?” Jase scowled and continued. “I mean really. You did this last night before I left too. You’re being ridiculous.”

Bella growled softly. “I never said any of that!”

“Well, you act like it! Stop being so possessi- “

“I can say good morning to my best friend alright?! If you have a problem with that, then get out of the call!” Bella snapped angerly. Silence followed. Not even a keyboard tap or mouse click. Bella cleared his throat and spoke in a quiet voice.  
“S…Sorry. It’s early I didn’t mean- “

“It’s fine. I’ll join you guys later.”

Neo frowned and whined. “Jase no, please don’t go…” He got cut off by the sound of Jase leaving the call. Neo growled at Bella, “Bella join vc 2.”  
Neo joined then waited for Bella to join. It was a way to host private conversations on the app, especially in their group. Bella joined and as soon as he did Neo growled again. “What’s the deal?” he asked, crossing his arms at the camera. “Even if you had a bad morning, you didn’t have to yell at him like that.”

Bella took a second to respond but when he did, he was even quieter than before.

“He was talking bad abou- “

“No! Bella, you’re acting so weird. First the weird words last night, then the yelling, and this! What is going on?” Neo frowned and looked into the camera. “...Talk to me. I’m your friend, you can tell me everything.”

Bella sighed on the other line and rubbed his hand over his keyboard. “Listen, some things I just can’t share with you, but don’t worry. I’m fine. I just need to figure stuff out. It’ll all be okay.”  
Neo frowned as Bella left the call right afterwards. 

“What does that even mean!” Neo whined, right before he joined the main call. He played the game with the others absent-mindedly until it was over and everyone split. He could not understand why Bella was being so… so weird!

Neo got off of his computer and checked his phone. Filled with a weird emotion, he called Bella on his cell number, something that he almost never did.  
“Neo? Hello?” Bella answered almost immediately.

“Bella, we need to talk. I feel like you’re hiding something from me and I want to know what it is.”

Bella scoffed on the other end of the call which made Neo whine. “It’s not that simple. You’d just laugh at me anyway.”

Neo shook his head. “You know I wouldn’t if you were so serious about it!”

Bella sighed, looking at his notifications then pressing the phone back against his ear. “Neo… do you know what you’re doing?”

Neo thought for a second. “What do you mean? I’m not doing anything?”

“Just as I thought, you don’t know. You don’t know what you’re doing to me.” Bella said distantly.

Neo frowned. “What are you talking about and why are you making this into a riddle? I’m actually concerned…”

Bella sat on his bed, running his fingers through his hair. “I wish you were here. I just… something changed. I don’t know what it is but… I think that you being here would fix that.”

Neo sighed. “You’re really confusing me, but if you want to hang out we can. Let’s just join a game or somet- “  
“No. I mean… in person.”

Neo froze. “In… person… Bella you know that I don’t have the money to travel down there.” He said sadly.

“I know but…”

“But what?”

“I just” Bella sighed softly. A deep whimper in his voice when he spoke. “I need you.”

Neo’s face turned red and he pulled the phone away from his face. “That’s not funny!” he growled, shaking his phone. “Stop messing with me! I thought something was actually serious. I’m done talking to you for now.”  
Neo furrowed his eyebrows as is thumb hovered over the end call button.

“Neo.” Bella protested. “Wait. I have one more thing to say.”

Neo gave in and pulled his thumb back. “What?”

Bella slowly responded with a submissive tone. “…I have a question for you.”

“What?”

“...How do you feel about me?”

“What do you- what does that mean?”

“Just think about it.”

Neo looked at his phone then pressed it against his ear as if that would make him understand it better.  
“What do I think… wait, but Bella. Why did you ask me t- “

“Just think about it,” he said sternly. “…please.” He added softly.

“...Okay…” Neo heard the call end shortly after. He sat on the floor with confusion written all over his face. “What does that even mean?” he mumbled, trying to think of an explanation. Such a weird question that came out of no where it seemed. “Is that why he’s acting weird? M…maybe it’s because of the person in his dream… does he think I won’t accept them?”

Neo sighed, randomly looking though his phone. The picture he accidently screenshotted caught his eye, bringing up the fact that he did in fact, screenshot a sweaty man with a smirk on his face and eyes full of intention. He pinched the screen and zoomed in on his face, doing so gave him a weird feeling, quickly causing him to shut his phone off.

“What do I think of you…” he mumbled softly again, looking at the shut off phone.

“I… I don’t know…” Neo pulled his legs up to his chest, nuzzling down in them.

The breakfast Neo set out was never prepared, leaving the eggs to sit uncracked on the table.


	3. Say It Again

He sat on the floor for a while, knees still pressed against his legs, deep in thought. His small hands, gripped his pants, hugging his legs closer to his body in order to feel safe. “Why would you ask me such a question?” Neo mumbled softly, looking down at his phone. “That’s such an odd question…”

Neo decided that he actually needed to eat something as it was almost dinner time. The sun was low in the sky, making the sky, a soft pink and purple. Gazing outside the window near his desk, he frowned at the beautiful sky, feeling like it was making fun of him. Neo let his wings slightly relax, feeling them sink downwards till they touched the floor. His hand raised; palm pressed against the glass window.

Cold…

The male’s expression softened as the sun disappeared behind the treetops, then down the tree until it was no longer visible. The soft colors in the sky faded along with it. The absence of color… the emptiness… it matched the inside of Neo. “Why…?” He pulled his hand away from the glass, pulling his hand closer to his body, to his chest, then gripping his sweater.  
A loud ring came from his phone. He jumped slightly then snatched his phone up. It was Bella. He answered it and put it on speaker.

“Hey.” Bella spoke when the line connected.

“Hey…” Neo said distantly.

“Are you okay?” Bella asked almost immediately after hearing the tone in his voice. “I…” he adjusted in his chair. “I’m sorry for saying that stuff earlier. I didn’t know what I was saying,” he lied with a chuckle.

Neo frowned. “Bella… I’m trying to think about it.” He moved over to his beanbag chair then sat in it, leaning back against the cool leather. “I feel like it was serious.”

“It’s not. It’s okay.” Bella said with another fake laugh. He ran his fingers through his hair, shutting his eyes for a second then opening them. A thin layer over his eyes reflected the screen’s light. With a shaky voice, he continued. “You don’t know what you’re doing…”

Neo frowned. “There you go again with that! Bella, stop speaking in code. You know I’m bad with riddles and stuff… I just want to know why you’re being so weird. Yesterday and today you’re just being so weird!”

The call was silent.  
Two agonizing minutes passed until Bella responded. 

“Neo… my little bat…” Bella murmured. “I don’t know what I feel. I don’t know anything that I’m doing. It’s just… happening.”

“And what does that even mean?”

“You know… the person in my dream.”

Neo blinked. His voice when soft. “Yeah?” A tone of curiosity peeked though. “What about them?”

Bella nervously continued. “It’s a guy.”

“So?” Neo chimed in quickly.

Bella felt slight relief but was still full of nervousness. “Neo.” Pulling his huge wings up on his body then letting them fall back down, with a sharp breath he drew. “Neo, promise you won’t laugh.”

Neo felt a feeling of dread now. “I promise.”

“It’s you. You’re the person in my dream.”

Neo immediately exhaled. “Bella come on, it’s not funny. I thought that you were being serious.”

Bella whined. “I am being serious. Dammit I am! Why do you think I’m kidding?? My chest hurts so badly when I talk to you. It aches and it makes it so hard to breathe. I wish I was kidding…” His voice trailed off.

Neo let out a shaky breath. Gripping his jacket, he whimpered softly. “Bella stop…” he whispered. “It’s not funny…” 

Bella shook his head. With a heart broken voice, he responded. Eyes stinging and chest aching.

“Neo… I think I like you.”

Neo scoffed. “Well, I sure hope so. I like you too buddy. We’re friends remember?” He answered quickly without hesitation.

Bella groaned softly but smiled. “Yeah,” he said, feeling the pain grow in his chest. Like a deep wound, it kept getting worse with every second that went by. A tightening of his airway for a second. A thirty-pound weight.  
It just hurt. A lot.  
The oblivious bat on the other line had honestly no idea how painful that word was to him now. It used to be such a simple word. 'Friend'. Now it carries such heartache that he can't stand being called it. Not by Neo at least.

“Is that what you wanted to say, Bella?” Neo asked softly but slightly disappointed. “I already know that you like me, otherwise we wouldn’t be friends, yeah?”

“Yeah.” Bella said before sighing. “I’ll call you later.” And just like that, the call was ended.

Neo, confused, set his phone down and hummed softly. The conversation replaying in his mind as he stretched his wings. They’ve been tight for too long and needed to air out so to speak.

‘I think I like you- '

Neo stopped and frowned. It felt so… soft when he said it. Like it was different than before. He huffed and crossed his legs, continuing to groom his wings. “There’s no way,” he whispered, his voice slightly cracking. “H-he wouldn’t… no he’s just kidding.”

The bat boy clenched his teeth together, running his fingers though his brown messy hair. “Still…”

Neo gently brushed his short hair out of his face, his brown eyes gazing up at the window. “I feel so weird…” he mumbled, running his hand over his chest for a second then stopping.

The voice echoed again, 'I think I like you…'

Heat. His face was warm, the feeling in his body getting more intense the longer he thought about it. Replaying it over and over in his mind.

Neo rolled onto his side, letting his wings flop down behind him. He wanted to hear him say it. His ears yearned for the other male’s deep voice repeating those words back to him.

Without waiting any longer, Neo called Bella back, the phone rang for several seconds before the other male answered. 

“Neo.” Bella greeted. “That was fast. Sorry but, I’m kind of busy right now actually...”

“No, I need something from you. It can't wait.” He said quickly.

“Huh?” Bella paused, caution in his next response. “W…what do you need, Bat?”

Neo let out a shaky breath. Feeling a familiar burn in his chest, he shut his eyes.

“Say it again.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hoped you liked my story Dee :3  
> More will come o.o
> 
> Heavily inspired by Heat Waves (DNF fanfic)  
> I'm just writing this for fun.


End file.
